SPACEMAN by Mike Massimino (Hardcover)

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OUR REVIEW

Exceptionally entertaining and inspiring. In his own words, Mike Massimino talks about growing up in Brooklyn with the dream of becoming an astronaut. Follow an ordinary guy in pursuit of a dream, through all the trials and self-doubts. Mike’s story will give you a new insight into the elite astronaut corp as he takes you through his training for a high-profile mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope on his first ever space fight! During his astronaut career, Mike Massimino became a “Hubble guy”, flying two shuttle missions, both to service the Hubble Space Telescope. He was also a recurring guest star on The Big Bang Theory playing himself. Now retired from NASA, Mike continues sharing his passion for space as a speaker and professor at Columbia University.

ABOUTSPACEMAN

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to find yourself strapped to a giant rocket that’s about to go from zero to 17,500 miles per hour?

Or to look back on Earth from outer space and see the surprisingly precise line between day and night? Or to stand in front of the Hubble Space Telescope, wondering if the emergency repair you’re about to make will inadvertently ruin humankind’s chance to unlock the universe’s secrets? Mike Massimino has been there, and inSpacemanhe puts you inside the suit, with all the zip and buoyancy of life in microgravity.

Massimino’s childhood space dreams were born the day Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon. Growing up in a working-class Long Island family, he catapulted himself to Columbia and then MIT, only to flunk his first doctoral exam and be rejected three times by NASA before making it through the final round of astronaut selection.

Taking us through the surreal wonder and beauty of his first spacewalk, the tragedy of losing friends in theColumbiashuttle accident, and the development of his enduring love for the Hubble Telescope—which he and his fellow astronauts were tasked with saving on his final mission—Massimino has written an ode to never giving up and the power of teamwork to make anything possible.

Spacemaninvites us into a rare, wonderful world where science meets the most thrilling adventure, revealing just what having “the right stuff” really means.

PRAISE

“Every generation of astronauts needs a storyteller — a person with wit, humor, and passion who has lived our collective dreams of space exploration and returned to tell us all about it. Mike Massimino is that person. He’s that astronaut. And this is his story.”—Neil deGrasse Tyson

“Mike Massimino writes about space with an astronaut’s eye and an engineer’s precision. You’ll be impressed with his journey and his perspective on where a well-developed space program can take us in the future.”—Senator John Glenn

“Inspired by moonwalkers, Mike grew up, became an astronaut, and fixed the Hubble Space Telescope, all while remaining some kinda’ humble. You can’t help but follow him from Long Island to the bottom of the spacewalk practice pool, then 350 miles up and back. He’s a spaceman through and through; he tells how hard work can take you out of this world.”—Bill Nye, the Science Guy, CEO of the Planetary Society

“Massimino’s incredible journeys, filled with grit, courage, suspense and thrills, are told with such candor and delight, that for a brief moment I felt I’d finally made it to space too. Read this book and be inspired to reach for the impossible.”—Brian Greene, Columbia University, author ofThe Fabric of the Cosmos

“An engaging and uplifting memoir that’s sure to give readers a deeper appreciation for the U.S. space program and inspire some future astronauts.” —Publishers Weekly